Motorcycle Hunting
by Erica.K.Bailey
Summary: Post Breaking Dawn. Bella starts second semester at Dartmouth a short time after the Volturi confrontation. Edward worries he is no longer irrestible. In an effort to regain their connection, they go motorcycle hunting. EPOV, Canon, tasteful lemons.
1. Chapter 1

Twilight owned by Stephenie Meyer

Post Breaking Dawn – January after the Volturi confrontation, first day of second semester at Dartmouth College.

This builds on the reaction Edward had in Eclipse to seeing Bella in a riding jacket. I wondered, how would Edward react, post-wedding, post-transformation to Bella in full riding leathers... well we'll get there - and it will be fun. Rated M for some tastful lemony material later on. EPOV

I hope you enjoy - and please review! (Gotta love the reviews!)

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Chapter 1

I danced my hands along the soft, yet sturdy skin of her waist as she lay with her body nestled into mine. Her breath hitched beneath my touch. Light was beginning to filter its way through the large bay window of our room, overlooking a small brook that ran into Boston Lot Lake.

"Love, Nessie will be awake soon. And, unlike you, I haven't repeated university half a dozen times…" Bella moaned.

"True…" I smiled, trailing my way upward. I'd spent the better part of the last century waiting for her – waiting… while I studied and read and learned and practiced night after night… and I had little interest in continuing now that I had her in my arms. "But you have an eternity to make up for it."

Her unnecessary breathing deepened as I caressed her sensitive skin. "Mmm…" she writhed under my touch, "Edward," she gasped as I rolled her onto her back to allow my lips to join my fingers, "Renesmee…"

"Rosalie and Emmett will take care of her. They owe me." I chuckled lowly. I wasn't taking no for an answer.

"But class… Dartmouth… an incredibly expensive and unnecessary education…" she continued to argue unconvincingly, and I felt the thrill of victory in hand.

"If Rosalie and Emmett get Renesmee ready, you've plenty of time to make your first class." I whispered against her chest, my nose grazed her clavicle and my fingers traveled south. I inhaled deeply. Though the blood that once tempted me no longer flowed through her veins, her scent was as potent as ever, tempting me in very different ways.

She moaned, arching her back, pushing her core forward to meet my lips, kissing and tasting their way down her exquisite body. I craved her. I would never stop craving her. My thirst was unquenchable. With a growl, she pushed against the bed and in a split second she had me on my back, using her newborn strength to gain the advantage. Hmm, I liked this game. I tugged at my arms, intending to reach for her waist and pull her to me, right where I wanted her.

But my arms remained stationary, locked under her iron grip as she hovered unmoving over me, her legs pegging mine to the bed. I looked up at her in surprise. This was new. I arched an eyebrow in curiosity. What exactly was she planning? I probed at the barrier that kept her thoughts from me that she occasionally lifted, laying bare her mind. She wasn't letting me in today.

She smiled down as she kneeled over me, my arms still held in place as her breathing slowed. "If you think I'm going to waste all that money you spent, buying my way into college, you've got another thing coming."

"W-what?"

"I'm not going to be late for my first day of school, Edward Cullen, no matter how much you tempt me otherwise."

I was speechless… and completely helpless as I struggled to loosen her hold on my arms, or move my thighs from under her strong legs.

"Stop struggling. I'm not kidding." She smiled.

"But I only did it to tempt you to stay human." I argued, "Since that clearly failed, the costs to get you in are simply a sunk cost and not to be considered this morning, in light of more… appropriate activities."

She laughed, shaking her head, "That's a pretty weak argument, Mr. Cullen." And with that she leapt from the bed and my anxious body to the door to our adjoining bathroom.

Damn! My head fell back to the bed. She'd chosen me, married me - making her mine, survived an impossible and miraculous childbirth, and was now transformed, making her mine forever – and she was _still_ driving me crazy.

I heard her light musical laughter from the shower. "I'll be home in two hours and forty-three minutes." She said. "And Jake already planned on taking Nessie hunting this afternoon. Do you think you can manage until then?"

I guess, I growled. I tried to think of something else, willing my body to calm in light of the fact that my intent moments ago was going to go unresolved… for now. "So, you're really looking forward to going to school."

"English Literature back to back with European History, Renaissance to Present what's not to love?" she replied.

"You know they'll probably just hand out the course syllabus and send you home… you could easily get a copy from a classmate at your next class."

She just laughed in response. So much for being irresistible. What happened to the Bella who couldn't get enough of me – to the girl who I had to constantly push away in my attempt to keep from hurting her? A nagging doubt filtered through my mind as I pushed my partially recovered body from the bed to reach for a pair of jeans and long sleeved brushed cotton t-shirt that Alice would probably freak over if she was here. Heck, she was probably freaking out about it all the way down in the Amazon.

I reached for my phone as it began to buzz on the dresser. Alice. I clicked it open.

"Listen, you're not here – so I can wear whatever I want."

A heavy sigh met my comment. "Fine! But now that you're no longer… otherwise occupied, I suppose you might like to know. We've found them."

"Found them – as in."

"As in, Jasper and I are standing here, ten feet from the Amazon River, right beside Nahuel's sisters. We're heading back to their camp to meet the others and learn what we can about their development."

"Call me as soon as you know anything."

"Of course," she smiled. "They haven't yet decided to talk to us, but they will." She chirped back.

"Thanks, Alice." I laughed.

"Wait." She said just as I was about to click the phone shut. "Hand me over to Bella."

I smiled. I couldn't read her mind from this distance, but I had a sense of what was coming as I handed over the silver phone. "Alice." I said as she took it.

"Thanks," she smiled back.

I chuckled and quickly retreated to the bed room. I wasn't sure she'd be so thankful after she was done talking to Alice.

"Hey Alice, it's so good to hear from you. I miss you so much. How are you and…" I heard her talking, as I smoothed out the bed and reclined on it, plotting my attack for later this afternoon. Clearly, if I was loosing my irresistibility, I was going to have to make up for it somehow.

"Oh, that's…" Bella continued, cut off by something Alice had said. "Sure, of course… but…What? You called me to tell me…" she exhaled loudly. "I can't believe, in the midst of… Fine – FINE!" she huffed as I heard the phone click shut. I rested back on the four post bed, my arms behind my head as she stormed in and threw the phone at me.

"Can you believe she called me, all the way from the Amazon, to tell me what to wear on my first day of school?" She hissed.

"Yes, I can." I smiled.

"I was going to wear jeans… nice, comfortable, _normal_ jeans." She whined, sitting down on the edge of the bed in defeat.

"So, go ahead."

"She already said she'd know if I was… I sort of thought of that already." She said sheepishly.

"So…" I reached over to run my hand down her back, "You don't have to go. You could stay here – and then it wouldn't matter…"

She stood up. "No. I have to go…" she said sharply and glumly made her way to the "barely adequate according to Alice" closet and pulled out the her Alice approved outfit – a pair of straight legged dark denim jeans, spaghetti strap, violet blue blouse that drew up in a thin bow just under the bodice and fell flawlessly to her hips, a structured short jacket and a pair of ridiculously high healed, brown leather ankle boots. I was thankful she was now more coordinated.

Thinking back to my earlier plans, I began to probe for information. "Bella, I am glad you're looking forward to school." I began, "I just… I'll just miss you. I could still come." I suggested hopefully.

"No, Edward. We've been through this. Even with all this extra," he hand gestured over her head in a circular motion, "head space… It's going to take actual work for me to not completely embarrass myself. I can't concentrate when you're with me."

The sting of her rejection, though I knew it was coming, was mollified by her admission. "I make it difficult for you to concentrate?"

She snorted, "Yeah – you know that."

"Well…" I started, "It didn't seem that it was all that difficult this morning."

Suddenly she was in front of me, her hands on my cheeks, allowing me to look deeply into her eyes, or was she looking deeply into mine. "You aren't seriously feeling… insecure are you?"

I tried to force out a casual "of course not" but it wouldn't come. The fact was, I was feeling a bit insecure. She had all she wanted – she was now a vampire, had her newborn strength, making her stronger still then even Emmett. That would go begin to diminish in a few months, but still – she no longer needed me to protect her from all things dangerous. And she could make her way on her own now. What could I truly offer her anymore?

Her amber eyes widened, alarmed. "Edward, you have nothing to worry about. Don't you realize how hard it was for me to leave you this morning? Don't you know that I would love nothing more then to spend my every minute…" she glanced away and, if it were still possible, she'd be blushing. "You know so much, have learned so many languages, have so many skills… I feel – inadequate. I want to do this and really do it." she said.

I smiled, taking her face in my hands, "Bella, you don't ever have to feel inadequate. You are everything."

She sighed, "I know. But still. I really want to do this. I don't want to regret not taking this opportunity."

The word caught me off guard. Regret. I wondered, "Are there things you do regret?"

"What do you mean?" she asked as she went back to getting ready, putting her books and iPad in her Alice approved bag.

"I mean, is there anything you regret about being with me – about becoming a vampire."

"Of course not." She replied, as she slung the bag over her shoulder. "Nothing."

"There's nothing you miss? Nothing you did as a human that you miss doing now?"

"Tripping over every spec of dust… injuring myself and everyone around me with any object in my possession… yeah, lots to miss."

"No, I'm serious." I caught her hands as she swept past. "What about your family and friends. Isn't there anything?"

"I get to see Charlie and Renee for a few more years… and the only close friend I had other than your family and Jake was Angela, and I'll email back and forth with her. I didn't really do much other then hang you with you guys – well other then motorcycling and cliff diving." She grinned.

I rolled my eyes at her poor choice of examples, the later of which led to the worst twenty-four hours of my existence. But then my mind twigged on something – motorcycling. She used to love motorcycling with Jacob and, even though it wasn't something we shared before – perhaps it was something she'd enjoy with me now that we were on, as she'd put it, equal ground.

I reached up and kissed her gently, holding back my desire to push for more. "Have a good day at school today."

"I will," she smiled back. "And if you're lucky, I'll flunk out by noon and we'll have the rest of the semester for other activities."

"I could be so lucky," I teased back, "But I don't think they flunk out people on the first day."

"Ah, too bad," she said in mock disappointment. "I love you." She said as she departed.

"I love you, too."

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_**Awe they're so sweet. Please let me know what you think! Some work for peanuts, I work for reviews :-)**_


	2. Chapter 2

Twilight – not mine, sadly enough...

Chapter 2

I waited by the window, watching as she left through the front door, leapt over the brook and took off through the forest. We'd purchased a house with 30 acres of land on the end of a mile long long winding road off Lahaye Dr into the middle of the forest. The only thing nearby was a water treatment plant and yet we were within a few minutes of the Medical Centre. It provided convenient access to our chosen food source and enough space that Bella and I could build our own "visitor's cottage" on the property, twenty feet from the main house where Carlisle, Esme, Rosalie, Emmett and Nessie were currently staying and Alice and Jasper would join them once they returned. It was a gift – the gift of privacy, something I greatly appreciated since our first months of married life consisted of two significant threats on Bella's life – first with the birth of Renesmee and then the threat of the Volturi, the busyness of hosting a house full of vampires to bare witness to our daughter, and maintaining ongoing appearances with Bella's father, Charlie. We had the cottage, but still, it hadn't been enough time and I'd been so thankful for when we finally decided, the second week of January, to take up Dartmouth's offer of a second semester start for Bella.

Once her figure disappeared into the forest, I turned and completed getting ready myself, pulling on a jacket (keep up appearances – it was January after all) and my shoes and taking off through the forest after her.

I thrilled as the scent of pine mixed with cedar hit my nose with the crisp air whipping through the flimsy material that covered my body, unaffected by the cool air. The distance to the main house was far too short. I always loved to run, but now that my life had become so full – with a wife – a mate and a daughter who'd I never thought was possible, every action, even one as simple and pleasure filled as running, seemed somehow amplified.

"Dad!" Nessie shouted excitedly as I passed through the back door off the dining room. I opened my arms in time to catch her as she launched herself from the table. "Auntie Rosy and Uncle Emmett are taking me to Montshire Museum of Science."

I momentarily hugged her close to my chest before she started to squirm uncomfortably. She was growing so quickly. Though her growth patterns had slowed, she was already over five years of age in development and not interested in sitting still for long.

"The museum over in Norwich, Vermont?" I glanced over at Emmett who was standing in the door way to the kitchen, leaning against the frame, arms folded, grinning. "I thought you were going hunting with Jacob."

She immediately replayed the arrangements in her mind.

"_Hey Nessie, what do you think about going to a science center?" Rosalie asked as she got Nessie ready._

"_A science center? What's that?" Nessie asked as she watched Rosalie put her curls up in barrettes._

"_Well, they show you how things work, how the earth works, how the body works, how computers work, what the universe is made up of…." Rosalie began to run off._

_Nessie started to swing her legs in excitement. "Really, it has all that? And it's where real people go? Will there be other kids there?"_

"_Yes, I imagine so."_

_She leapt up into Rosalie's arms, "Yes, yes, yes – I love the science center!"_

_Rosalie laughed, "Alright. Now all we have to do is make sure Jacob is okay-"_

"_Oh, don't worry. I'll make sure it's okay!" She jumped up and ran to find Jacob._

_He was pacing the living room waiting for Nessie to be ready._

"_Jakey, Jakey, guess what. Auntie Rose is going to take me to the science centre. We can go hunting later right?" She said, eyes shining, bouncing in his arms._

"_Uh…" Jacob looked from her to Rosalie and Emmett, a frown crease appearing across his brow. He was about to object, then he looked back at Nessie, so full of excitement and hope. And suddenly his shoulder slumped. "Yeah, we can go when you get back."_

"You still should have asked me or Mommy first." I said with a warning glance at Emmett. Bella wouldn't like Rosalie playing Renesmee against Jacob like that.

_Hey, it's only, five minutes away…besides, it's educational!_ Emmett argued as Nessie added, "They said it would be okay. They said that you'd be busy today anyway."

I looked back up to Emmett whose grin just became infinitely larger. "Alice." He chuckled.

"Wha-"

_Heard you got rejected…_ He teased. _Guess the honeymoon's officially over._

He ducked out of the door and was through the back door before I could put Nessie down and go after him. Suddenly I saw the fierce eyes, the set of my jaw and the tight line of my lips as reflected in the mind of my daughter. I carefully rearranged my features. "It's okay, honey. Uncle Emmett was just teasing Daddy." I reassured her. "Yes, you can go."

Jake glowered down at the huge meal he'd just finished setting on the table – a stack of pancakes, sausages, eggs, hash browns, a glass of orange juice and milk.

"You know, you can't eat your girl problems away."

He looked up, a faint smile ghosting his lips. _Girl problems? From what I hear you've got it worse then me._

Had everybody heard about this morning's escapades? I shook my head and headed up stairs to the study. Clearly I wasn't needed down here. Besides, I had a little research I wanted to do before Bella got back. I wonder, how much would I need to pay to have two Ducati Superbike 848 delivered before her return. I sighed – even with our resources, there were some things that were simply not doable. Beside, I wasn't completely sure I wanted the Superbike. Perhaps something lighter like a Streetfighter that may handle better on backroads. Or did I want to go bigger – to the 1198 if we were going to do more highway riding? It was, at least, worth a bit of research to see what else was available.

The cell phone vibrated in my pocket. I slipped it out, checking the caller id. Alice again. Annoyance flared up. How dare she call me after she'd shared my personal matters with the family? I just about didn't answer but then I thought, could they already have news?

"Alice!" I said tersely as I flipped open the phone.

"Don't bother yelling me out. I already know you're annoyed, but I did it for your benefit." She started.

"Fine. What do you know?" I barked, not wanting to get into an argument now.

"That you're on the right track, but you're about to totally screw things up." She replied in annoyance.

"What?" What did this have to do with hybrids?

She sighed heavily, "Edward, you're doing it again! You're doing everything _for_ her, not _with_ her."

"What are you talking about?"

"The motorcycle… trying to reconnect with your wife…"

"Alice." I warned. This was private and she' already intruded quite enough.

"Listen, Edward. How much do you enjoy shopping?"

"No much." I rolled my eyes. What was she talking about?

She growled into my ear. "I mean – how much do you enjoy doing research on a potential purchase – looking at all latest models, checking out the specs of each, comparing performance."

I didn't know what to say. It was only prudent to do research before such a purchase. Though the more I thought about it, the more I realized that I truly enjoyed that part of it, trying to figure out what was the best for what I wanted, what was going to give me the biggest pay off for the investment.

She took my silence as acknowledgement. "You see – don't you think Bella might like to participate in that part as well. That maybe she'd appreciate the results better if she was a part of the purchase?"

Hmmm. Was that what it was with her and that first peace of crap bike with Jacob? She'd found it, watched him rebuilt it from basically nothing… she'd been a part of it.

"Ah, yes." She said, "You're changing your mind… Hmmm…"

"What is it?" I asked, frustrated I couldn't see her visions from here.

She laughed, "Oh, you'll see… you can thank me later." And she hung up.

I clicked the phone shut, frustrated that she wouldn't tell me.

After bidding Nessie a good day and warning Emmett and Rosalie and Jacob to take care of my precious daughter, I went for a run in an attempt to burn off my nervous energy. Now that I'd decided to shop for a bike with Bella, I was anxious to get started. It was sort of exciting, looking for something together. A flush of pleasure ran through me as I anticipated discussing the finer points of engine size, torque, ride and comfort. Perhaps we'd try out a few models. A weekend trip to Italy was out of the question – too close to the Volturi. But we could easily have several different models delivered: the entire Ducati line, a BMW or two, one of the larger Husqvarna if we were looking at doing only off-roading.

I briefly considered calling ahead to find out how soon they could be delivered, but my phone immediately rang.

"No!" Alice shouted at me.

"Aren't you on some sort of important mission right now?"

"Yes, and your being stupid isn't helping me focus."

"What are you talking about?"

"Edward, just relax and wait for Bella… and _try_ to not be your normal controlling self. Let her take the lead a bit."

I clicked the phone shut. Annoying little pixie.

The time passed slowly, but finally I heard her car turn off the road and start down our driveway. I put the book down I'd been reading to meet her at the front door.

"Hey Edw-" she got out before I pressed my lips to hers. Even without the drastic difference in temperature, her touch shot electricity through my lips and down to my core. Just her presence evoked a response from me, and, at times, I was powerless to fight against it. I wanted her… I would always want her.

She wrapped her arms around my neck, tangling her fingers in my hair as she kissed back. I didn't have to hold back now, and I wouldn't. Over and over I touched her lips, tasted her mouth, wanting more.

"Nessie?" she panted as she broke away for a fraction of a second.

"Out." I replied back.

"Mmm…" she moaned against my lips and I felt her legs wrap themselves around my waist as her fingers began to pull my shirt from the back of my pants.

I reached around and cupped her backside, holding her even closer to me, and pushing her up so I could descend from her mouth to her jaw and down to her clavicle, the very place I left off with this morning. Only the plans that I was so excited to share with her kept me from running back to our cabin in the woods and continuing in the direction I'd so desperately wanted to go in earlier.

"Is there a reason we're still in the entry way?" She asked as I grazed my nose along her neckline to her shoulder and then back up to her ear where I nipped playfully.

"We have plans." I replied, smiling against her neck.

"Uh yeah, I know… so what are we doing here?"

I chuckled, "Different plans…"

She growled and I almost set aside my thoughts of shopping for a motorcycle as the vibrations sent a very different suggestion through my body. "But I liked the plans we made this morning." She moaned into my mouth and started running her hands up my back.

So did I. And we could return to those plans, just as soon as we had what could be a very brief discussion and put in our order. I didn't want to risk wasting another delivery day for our samples to arrive. I slowed my fevered kissing and pulled back a bit as she set her feet back down on the ground, a pout on her lips.

She sighed, "So, what exactly are we doing this afternoon that's so important that we're wasting our alone time?"

"Well," I started, trying to put together the best way to introduce the topic, "I've been thinking."

"See, that's your problem," she pouted, "You _think_ way too much."

I smiled. I didn't disagree. "That may be true, but I think you might like what I've come up with… at least, I hope so…" I replied, now a bit uncertain. I'd become so enthralled with the idea, I hadn't considered that she might not be as excited about this as I was.

"So…" she said, her hands now on her hips, "what is it?"

"It started with something you said this morning – about your sudden interest in extreme sports before you were changed."

"We're going cliff diving?" she asked, the crease appearing between her eyes just as it had in her human days.

"No – though, that might be fun some time." I teased. "Actually, I was thinking about another attempt at motorcycling."

"Motorcycling?" she stared back, shocked. "You want to go motorcycling? But I gave my bike back to Jake and he left it back at La Push."

"Your old bike." I pushed.

She groaned, "You bought me another bike." She threw her head into her hands.

Okay, Alice was right. Going ahead and buying her a bike would have been a mistake. I'd have to thank her… eventually. "No, I didn't buy you a bike. But I was thinking – maybe we could go bike shopping together." I raised an eyebrow, prepared for her to shoot down the idea.

"Huh." She replied, as she retreated back into her mind, deep in thought.

Huh? What did that mean?

"So you want us to shop for bikes together? As in, we'd get the same bike?"

"That depends. I mean I think it makes sense for us to at least get compatible machinery. I remember how you felt about it before – my powerful bike compared to the…" embarrassing disgrace of nuts and bolts. "smaller motorcycle you were riding."

"So, if I wanted a smaller bike, you'd be willing to get something smaller as well?"

I swallowed. "Er.. well… I suppose." Within limits. "If that is what we decided was best for what we wanted to do." I mean, how much smaller could she mean?

She raised an eyebrow, "And by 'we' you mean?"

"That we'll make the decision together. We'll discuss our needs, do the research, try out some different models, compare the options and make the decision together."

"Wow."

"What?"

"Well, it's just… in the past you've sort of… just taken over and done things." A huge smile spread over her face, "I kinda like the idea of doing it together." Something flashed through her eyes. "In fact, that sounds like fun."

"Really? I mean, I didn't think you were into cars."

"I'm not. But it would be sort of fun to learn about it with you. Don't get me wrong. I'm not going to get to the point of discussing… well… engine thingies with you. But to go look at a couple different bikes, take them for a test drive, and make a decision. Yeah, that sounds like fun – if it's with you." She threw her arms around me then and planted a huge kiss.

"What was that for?"

"For including me in this. For doing it with me!" She grinned.

I felt a silly grin grow on my face. This was going a lot better then I had guessed. "So, do you want to get started?"

"Now? Uh, sure, yeah… We have time." She pulled out her iPad and sat down on the nearby armchair. "So, where do we get started? Should I look up the classifieds on line and see what's out there? Maybe we can find a good deal on a newer model…"

I cleared my throat. Before we got too carried away I had to make something very clear, "We are not buying a used bike."

"We're not?"

I laughed, "No, I don't think so. I mean that's fine for some people, but…"

She smiled, "But you would want to order one with a few custom changes and special touches?" she guessed.

"To start with." Besides we'd be unlikely to find a Ducati anything in the classifieds.

She shook her head. "Fine. I can go with new." She rolled her eyes as she taped on the screen of her iPad. "Well, there doesn't appear to be any dealerships in Hanover, but…" her fingers taped the screen a few more times, "there are a few dealerships in Lebanon… Lebanon Motor Sports selling motorcycles form Yamaha, Honda, Kawasaki…" she read off. "Oh, we could get Goldwings!"

A panicky feeling started to rise in my chest. A Goldwing? A Honda Goldwing? A touring bike? Did she not know me at all? I took a few deep breaths as she continued.

"Budget Biker – oh, they're just for parts… Shaker Valley Victory Motorcycles – that's over in Enfield… Granite State Harley Davidson."

I'd managed to arrange my features into a carefully placid expression, so when she looked up she didn't catch the pained scowl that I'm sure was on my face as she read out the suggestions.

"I was thinking that, perhaps, we'd have some better options if we looked… further a field." I tried to suggest tactfully. "Perhaps we could have a few models delivered."

"Jake's bike was a Harley Davidson and I liked it." she smiled brightly. "And they're right here. What do we need delivery for?"

My heart sunk. A Hog. She wanted me to ride a Hog. How did I explain that there was no way on God's green earth that I would be spending any amount of time on one of those noisy, uncomfortable, testosterone replacing status symbols? Hogs were for football players and fist slugging bikers and guys who were trying to prove they weren't middle aged when, in fact, they were well past. Hogs were for guys like… Emmett.

I took another few breaths. Alice had told me to let her take the lead. And perhaps Bella didn't understand the difference between a rough riding, status bike and a finely tuned, smooth riding piece of Italian craftsmanship. She probably didn't know that only Ducati's had Desmodromic valve control that ensured no loss of performance at higher speeds. How could she? Her only experience had been on that resurrected puddle jumper.

That thought gave me some relief. Yes, we'd go visit her beloved Harley Davidson dealership, take a bike for a test drive and, when she compared that to the Ducati, she'd understand the difference. In fact, we'd probably laugh about it later.

"You want to check out Granite State Harley Davidson?" I asked.

"Yes." She smiled, "Let's go."

"Great!" I replied with false enthusiasm. We're going to look at Hogs. Wonderful.

_**WOW! Thanks for all the reviews so far! I really appreciate them!**_

_**And, a big huge thanks to those of you who also read Cullens to go Hogwarts. I just found out I won a Twi-Award for best Twilight/HP Cross-over. **___


	3. Chapter 3

_**Twilight – don't own it… just borrowing for a bit…**_

And before any of you bike riders get too upset – I love all kinds of bikes, tend toward Honda's myself. We've got 2 'Wings and a Rebel... It's Edward who's all snobbish with the Ducatis. There's not much I can do about that!

Chapter 3

The salesperson spotted us as soon as we walked through the door. _College kids, looking for a little excitement…_ He rolled his eyes and almost snorted until he looked past us toward the parking lot. _Oh nice car – is that a Vanquish?_

I grinned to myself. I'd brought my special occasion car – just to make sure everyone knew exactly who they were playing with. The Volvo, well that could be mistaken for a parental car. But no father would allow his son to drive his Vanquish. And I was pretty sure they'd never sold a Hog to a Vanquish driver.

He finished ogling the car and decided we might we worth his time. "Good day. What can we help you with today?" He smiled at both of us, careful not to linger to long over Bella's physique. _Careful… the guys not going to buy from you if you're overtly checking out his mind-blowingly hot girlfriend._ Well, at least we were on the same page there.

I gestured to Bella. This was her idea and I was letting her take the lead. She looked back at me with narrowed eyes. Then, with pursed lips she turned to the salesperson. "We're, um, shopping for a motorcycle."

_A bike for the girl?_ The guy was momentarily surprised, but quickly changed his focus to where he preferred it – he potential client. "Great. So what are you looking for? A street bike? Something for long distance highway driving? Or did you have a model in mind?"

"Uh…" she glared back at me, and then turned back, "I'm not really sure."

The salesperson's heart beat increased slightly, frustrated as he was now sure the time spent would be fruitless. "Have you ever ridden before?" _Arge, newbies. Why do I always get these kids who know nothing and come in thinking that buying a bike is as simple as…_

"Oh yes," Bella replied quickly, "I used to have a Harley Sprint." She squinted slightly at the lie, but he suspected nothing.

"Really, where did you get that?" He asked, leaning forward, suddenly interested as his two favorite things came into focus: a pending commission and the bodice of Bella's blouse. He appreciated how it gathered under her chest, emphasizing her perfect cleavage. I held back a growl of anger over the obscene picture that ran through his mind, Bella on a bike in a leather jacket, and not much else. All the while, she talked about how she'd found the bikes and they were rebuilt from scratch.

"So, you're looking for a step up, am I right?" _A rather big step up… _He tried to smile politely, tried not to let the filth of his mind show through the lens of his dull gray eyes.

"Yes, exactly – something a bit bigger."

"Well, why don't we look at the models we have in stock and start from there." He gestured to the long line of bikes in their show room, as he started to walk down the line. "First of all, anything we have here is going to be quite a step up from the Sprint. But, if you're comfortable riding, getting a bigger bike isn't much of an adjustment…" he began to blabber on and on, letting her walk ahead of him as he tried to casually check her out. _She has got a fine piece of –_

I suddenly took a wide step, knocking my elbow into his kidney.

"Sorry," I said gruffly.

"Not a problem." He rubbed his side. _That's gonna bruise._

"What about that one?" Bella asked, pointing at a large, all black bike a third of the way down the line.

"The Softtail Fat Boy Lo. Nice bike." He smiled. "Definitely a step up from the Sprint, but also a popular choice with women riders."

"Why's that?" she asked, now caressing the chrome around the headlight.

"It's got one of the narrowest and lowest cut seat at 24.25 inches." _Hmm, I think I smell love at first sight,_ he thought as he watched her eyes rake over the flat black paint and classic styling. _This might be easier then I thought._ "Do you want to it for a ride?" He smiled, allowing a bit of flirtation as his back was turned away from me, facing her.

"Can I?" She looked up eagerly, too eagerly.

_Yep, I was right – this is a sale!_ He glanced back at me for the first time since we walked through the door and flinched. _Wonder what the deal is – is he buying it for her? Hmm… I need to lay off the flirting._

Yeah you'd better lay off the flirting, before I relieve you of your eyes… and perhaps a few other body parts you won't be needing anymore.

His eyes widened and heart beat quickened as his body perceived the danger his mind rejected. He turned back to Bella. "Why don't you try it on for size. See how it feels. Maybe your..." _husband? No, too young…_ "boyfriend can help you." _Let the boyfriend think he's the man… get him in on the sale…_He thought to himself as he escaped to the back to arrange a test ride.

"So, what do you think… boyfriend?" she teased.

"I think I don't like the way he was looking at you." I frowned.

She sighed, "I mean about the bike?"

I looked into her happy, excited eyes and I knew I couldn't tell her what I really thought, that I thought this was an inferior machine and that we should leave immediately and call my contact in Italy. Instead I replied, "You seem to like it. Why don't you take it for a drive and see what you think?"

She grinned like a child. "Do you really think they'll let me? I think he thinks I'm too young."

"I can assure you that he does not think of you as too young." I replied dryly.

Bella eyed me carefully. "What is wrong with you?" she said too fast and too low for human ears.

"I just don't like what he was thinking about you – how he pictured you…"

She glanced back at where they guys was arguing with his boss about letting the young lady on the fatboy have a test drive.

"Edward, if he's being inappropriate we can leave. I don't want this to turn into a fight."

"No, it's alright. I think he started to realize that I was here and he'd have to change his tactic. Besides, I think you're about to get your test ride." I said as the red faced man rushed back to our side. Bella quickly did up the buttons of her short jacket to provide a small increase in coverage. It really didn't help much, but it was at least a gesture.

"You're in luck," he said as he returned, noticing the now closed jacket, much to his disappointment. "We recently had a demo ride event and the bikes haven't shipped out yet. We've got a Fat Boy and a couple other bikes you might like to try… did you bring your helmet?"

"Oh, no," Bella replied, visually disappointed as she got off the bike. "I guess that means I can't take a test ride."

"No, we have some space out back. You just can't take it off the lot…" he replied, reassuringly.

"Okay," she smiled as she skipped to his side, unable to hide her enthusiasm. The man led us out back as he mentally calculated the commission on the inflated price he was prepared to quote us once 'the girl' was completely in love.

"This is the fat boy." He yelled above the roar of the engine, something that would have been completely unnecessary with a Ducati, "just take it for a ride around the lot-"

But his further instruction was lost as Bella shifted into gear, released the clutch and opened the throttle with perfect timing. My heart swelled with pride as she handled the large bike like a pro, gracefully weaving around obstacles, leaning into the turn, building up some speed and returning to our location.

_Wow, she does know how to ride…damn that's hot…_ "Great job" he yelled as she returned, a huge grin plastered to her face. "We have the others on standby, but you might have trouble reaching…"

"No, this is great… can I take it again?" she asked as she revved the engine.

"Sure." He smiled, swallowing a little as she took off again, faster then the first time, accelerating to a speed most humans would find uncomfortable in the limited space. She easily slowed enough to circle around and head back, slaloming back and forth. I laughed as I watched her play, having the time of her life. She didn't even stop as she returned, but curled around and took another round.

She was laughing as she brought the bike back to its starting position, shifting back to neutral and kicked down the stand. She turned off the bike and threw the salesperson the key as she swung her leg off the bike. "Thanks, that was fun!"

I couldn't believe the transformation. She was alive and wild and a bit cocky as she walked back toward the show room, the sales person following with his jaw hanging. He managed to recover as we reached the door.

"Uh, did you want to test ride…" he asked me.

"No, I'm fine." I replied, giving him a hard stare, earning another flinch. I smiled, showing all my teeth – and yes another flinch and a shiver down his back. Good, we're on the same page here.

"Sure, great…" he glanced back at Bella. "So… did you… want to look at helmets or gear?" he asked, now sure of the sale, thinking of how he was going to maximize his earnings.

Bella glanced back at me. Her eyes had darkened in a way that only happened when we were thirsty - for blood or otherwise. He face beamed with excitement. I was never more in love then I was in this moment. I briefly considered buying the bike here and now.

"I don't know – do I _need_ any gear?"

What she was really asking was, given that we were basically indestructible, were we going to bother with purchasing a set of unnecessary leathers? Of course, there were other benefits – like protection from the sun on a clear day. And maintaining our human façade.

"You might as well see what they have." I suggested, letting her know that, yes, when the time came, we would be buying gear.

"We have a large assortment of riding gear. It all depends on what you're looking for." The sales person led her away to the clothing section, trying to not exclude me and also not actually look at me at the same time. "We have FXRG High-Performance gear, which is great for both protection and the rain. You don't have to bother with stopping to put on rain gear for a light rain and the jackets have armor build into the shoulders and elbows for added protections…" he rambled on, unaware of the expression on Bella's face.

"They look kind of… bulky." She said, tactfully.

"Well yes." He paused considering. "We do have the woman's wicket jacket on sale… but I think you'd find the woman's pink label clothing to well suit your, er… stature." He glanced back at me briefly to ensure he hadn't overstepped his bounds. "So, um… there is the 3-in-1 jacket which had a removable poly/spandex fleece hoodie for extra warmth if you're riding in cold weather."

"I think we'll only be riding in warm weather." Bella interrupted.

"Well, then, you'll probably want the lightweight leather jacket. It has a simple cut, definitely not bulky, but still plenty of protection." He picked up one for her to try on as he continued.

"Here's the activewear pant…" he started as he pulled a pair of what looked like yoga pants from a shelf.

"You wear these on a bike?" she asked.

"No, these are for under the leather pants." He replied, leading the way, "and you'll need leather gloves… he pulled out several pairs for Bella to try. She settled on a pair and he put the others back.

"Now, for under the jacket we have long sleeved shirts, t-shirts and tanks, depending on the weather. When it's hot, a lot of chic-er, woman like to wear tank tops."

Bella shrugged, "Sure makes sense." And he pulled a tank top from a shelf and added it to the pile.

"And, well, then we have leather pants or chaps. Now, personally, I prefer the pant. Sure, they can be a bit warm, but if you wear the activewear pant under, then when you get somewhere, you can peel them off and you're fine. With chaps, you still have to stop for rain, otherwise you'll get wet on your…" he glanced down toward the top of her legs and then jerked her head upward, "well… anyway, you'll get wet. And when it's hot and you peel them off, you still have jeans under which are hot." _Damn, am I saying hot to much?_ He glanced sideways at me to see if he'd pissed me off further. I gave him a very pointed look to assure him he had.

"Makes sense. Let's go for the leather pants." Bella smiled as he picked up a pair of leather riding pants.

"So, that's it before we look at helmets-"

"Oh, I have a helmet."

"and riding boots… but try those on first." He showed her to the change room.

An awkward silence fell upon us as we waited for her to change.

"So… uh. How long have you been riding?"

"Many years." I replied. "I used to have a Ducati Superbike 848."

_A Ducati? What's this guy doing in a Harley shop? Don't get many Ducati owners switching to Hogs…_"Wow, that's quite a bike. Did you race?"

Well, at least someone understands, even if it's the lecherous salesman. "No," I smiled mischievously, "Well, not officially."

He chuckled back. "Well, with a bike like that, who could blame you. So what happened to it?"

"I gave it to my brother."

_Wow, nice gift._ "So you must also be in the market."

"I only buy Italian." I stared straight ahead, not meeting his eyes. No need to scare the man further.

"Oh, of course." He shifted slightly. "So, do you live in the area?"

"Bella attends Dartmouth."

Dartmouth, wow…" _Smart, and sexy - hot._

I reconsidered my 'not-scaring-the-man-further' position. I turned to give him another hard stare, making him jump and causing his heart to race out of control. He shifted away slightly.

"So, do you need to talk to our financing specialist about a payment plan on the bike… or…"

"We're just looking today."

His thoughts sunk. He'd been so sure of the sale. The dollar signs disappeared from his mind as he shifted another step away. _Should have sealed the deal when they first came in. What was I thinking?_

"So, I'm not 100% that I did everything up right." Bella said as she emerged from the change room.

A dozen inappropriate images flooded through my brain, all involving Bella and only a few coming from the man next to me. I was completely enthralled. The way the leather pants clung to her legs and the jacket form fit her body, the excitement and passion that flashed in her eyes, a remnant of the ride, and her wind swept hair. It reminded me of a day last year, when I first put her in a riding jacket – only then she'd seemed like a girl to me. This – this was a self possessed woman, confident and sexy and my wife and a vampire and I could now do what I wanted with her. Which was exactly what we were going to do.

I quickly calculated the cost of the outfit. Pulling out a wade of bills to cover the total plus a bit more I handed it to the guy. "Ring it up."

_Holy crap. This kid's got this kind of money just on him. And a Ducati he just gave to his brother._ "Is there anything else-"

"No, we have to leave… now." I hissed at the man and he jumped.

"Edward, what-"

I simply reached for her hand and tugged, resisting the urge to throw her over my shoulder and flee from the store. She stared back at me wide eyed as I pulled her a little too fast for a human and forcibly helped her into the Vanquish, which roared to life and we spun out of the parking lot.

"Edward what is going on? I'm sure that man didn't mean anything…"

I couldn't speak. I simply pushed the car to its maximum while I headed for the nearest wooded, secluded area. Once there, I threw the car into park.

"Edward, what is wrong?"

"You," I growled, "Are. Completely. Hot." I reached for her.

In a flash, she escaped my grasp, jumping out of the car, grinning. "Whatever do you mean, Mr. Cullen? Do you like this – the leather pants… the leather jacket… She struck a pose designed to maximize the effect of the skin tight leather.

A growled ripped from my throat as I leapt from the car. All pretenses of humanness were left shredded just as her new clothes were about to be. I lunged at her. I had to have her – now.

"Now, you don't want to ruin my new clothes." She laughed as she jumped out of my way, avoiding my grasp. A profanity issued from my lips as she disappeared from sight.

I heard the pull of a zipper and the sound of leather sliding over granite skin. And when I turned, I was now faced with my Bella, clad in just the leather pants and the skin tight tank top.

Growl after growl echoed through the trees. She simply put up her hand and, somehow, I obeyed as she slowly, every so slowly, painfully even, undid her pants and pulled them down her legs.

"Bella you're killing me." I croaked, my breathing now coming in quick pants.

"What – this?" she grazed her hand down her black tank top and active wear pants as she turned, waging her buttocks at me.

That was the last straw. I snapped. I flew at her, nothing but my animalistic nature driving me. She squealed, giggling as I tackled her to the forest floor. The sound of granite boulders crashing together echoed throughout the trees, deer fled, flocks of birds took off and carnivores slunk to the safety of their caves or dens, quivering in fear.

The rest of her clothes were shredded in a tenth of a second and in the next, she was pressed, face down, against the hood of the Vanquish. Her eyes flashing black as she twisted her head to the side, her windswept hair flared out against the windshield. I held her hands down as she'd held mind this morning.

"Edward!" she gasped.

I growled in return eliciting a moan from her. And within a few minutes we were both panting against the hood of the car.

The guilt hit me as quickly as the moment had passed. What had I done? How had I treated her… my love, my life, my wife…"I… I'm sorry, love." I gasped when I found the ability to speak again, unable to meet her gaze.

"For what?"

"It was too fast. I couldn't wait. I had to have you. I treated you like…"

She sighed, "Edward, in case the noises I was making didn't clue you in, that was… really intense."

"I know – but…"

"But nothing. Besides it's kinda hot – doing it on the hood of a car." She chuckled.

Kinda? There was no kinda about this. I pulled us both back off the hood of the car and cradled her in my arms as I set her gently down on the forest floor. Then I worshiped her body over and over as I should have when she first got home from school. It was well after sundown when we finally made it home.


	4. Chapter 4

_**Twilight – belongs to Ms. Meyer... just sayin'**_

I'm sorry for taking sooooo long. Real life, work, motorcycle trip with the family... but here is another chapter. I hope you like it.

Chapter 4

Due to the lateness of her registration, it was difficult to find open classes at night as we'd originally planned. Of course, we could have simply offered to make a generous donation and several professors would have found room for one more admittance into their classes, but Bella would have none of that.

"I already let you bribe my way in," she'd hissed at the suggestion, "Now let me just do it myself."

I could have tried to be persuasive, but my powers of persuasion were sadly lacking as of late. Besides, whenever it was light, she'd have to skip class and stay home with me. And I truly didn't mourn the loss of evening time that would have come if she'd taken a class every night. And, it allowed us to make up time with our miraculous daughter – time I'd stolen after the previous day's adventure.

"I feel guilty," Bella said when we arrived at home late into the evening, peering into our daughters room. She lay peacefully, wrapped around her favorite stuffed toy, a wolf Jacob had given her, her copper curls framing her sweet face.

I felt it too. I hadn't once thought of my daughter as I attacked my wife in the forest. This balancing parenthood with being newly weds was trickier then I ever thought.

"I don't think she noticed, though." Bella said softly with a hint of sadness. "Rosalie said they had a wonderful time."

I sighed, "We'll make it up to her tomorrow. You don't have a class until 6. Maybe we should take her out somewhere."

So, this morning, further thoughts of motorcycles were put on hold as we made plans to take Renesmee for a picnic and swimming in the nearby lake. While Bella got her dressed and packed swimming gear for us, my hand iched to make a quick call to Italy.

The phone buzzed as I picked it up.

_**Be patient!**_ The text read. It was from Alice. I sighed and slipped the phone into my pocket. I just couldn't wait until we were taking short road trips, seeing the local sites, and just enjoying being together. We could even take Renesmee.

After a day of running through the local forest, hours of swimming and even a quick hunt with our daughter, we returned with only a few minutes for Bella to gather her things and head off to her night class.

"See you later, love." She breathed into my lips as she kissed me and I yearned for more. "Sleep well, Renesmee," She pulled her up and squeezed her tightly. Renesmee quickly reached up and pressed her hand to her head. Images of our day flooded through her mind.

"I had a wonderful day too," Bella said as she gave Renesmee a quick kiss. "I love you."

"I love you too." She replied softly and then leapt back to my awaiting arms and we both watched as Bella ran off into the forest. I sighed as I watched her go.

"Mommy will be back," Renesmee said comfortingly.

I turned my attention back to my miraculous daughter, comforting me. I shook my head in wonder. "Of course she will, Nessie. Now let's get you ready for bed."

There was only a brief battle of wills as both Rosalie and Jacob showed up at the door of Nessie's room to read her a bedtime story. Reading to Renesmee was the most miraculous experience. As I read Chaucer, Shakesphere, Dickens… complex and sometimes surprising images continuously flashed through her mind. It was like watching a movie in the making. I read until the images finally faded into the less precise, more opaque images of her dreams.

"You amaze me, Renesmee," I whispered into her hair as I kissed her forehead. "You are the most precious gift I never thought to hope for."

I waited there, watching her dreams until I heard Bella approaching through the trees.

There was a time when I longed for sleep – for the ability to drift off into oblivion and dream. All those nights, curled up at Bella's side as she murmured snippets from the events passing through her mind, I wished I could simply join her. Would we dream together, I'd wondered. Would she visit my dreams and I hers? If that had been possible I knew every dream would be of her.

Not anymore. It was the pinnacle of my joy that every night we fulfilled the dreams I couldn't ever have and I was thankful she no longer needed the long hours of rest. Still it wasn't enough. I groaned as the first light of day pierced through the window of our bedroom. Maybe today would be sunny, I thought hopefully.

Again, what a contrast. I had once hated the sun. Hated that it drove me into hiding, hated that it showed me for the monster I am, hated that it kept me from Bella. Now I longed for it and the excuse it brought to keep her with me.

"Don't be sad," Bella whispered as she traced a finger across the line of my lips. "We've still got two hours before I have to go."

But she would still go.

"I know," Bella continued as he finger continued down the plains of my chest, pausing to circle my navel. "It's hard for me too – being away."

"Is it?" I asked softly.

"Of course." She replied, incredulous. "Every time it takes all my strength to run away from you. It's only knowing that you'll be here when I get back that allows me to do it."

Her finger was now trailing lower, "Besides, it makes it all the more precious, don't you think?" her head crooked to the side, her lips drew into a playful smile. And as she touched me all other conscious thought left.

An argument ensued as I approached the main house after Bella had left for the day.

"Listen Psycho-blonde!" Jacob was growling, "You tricked me out of a day just two days ago. Today is mine!"

"Yours to do what?" Rosalie shot back, "Do you even have a plan of what you're going to do?"

I could see from Jacob's mind he didn't. Just some general thoughts about being together – maybe going for a run in the forest, hunting, playing in the trees. An image of a recent tickle fight came to mind and though it was completely innocent, I stiffened. I wasn't nearly as accepting of the dog's claim on my daughter as Bella was.

"Hmph, I didn't think so," Rosalie smirked, victory in her eyes. For some reason that urked me almost as much.

As I passed through the door, a package caught my attention. Ah yes. I'd been waiting for that. I smiled as a plan formed in my mind.

"I'm sorry, but Renesmee is going to be with me today," I informed them both.

"I am?" I heard her musical voice from two floors up and, in a second later, I opened my arms to catch her as she flew through the air from the first landing.

"Yes," I chuckled, holding her close. "Would you like to see where Mommy goes to school?"

"Can I?" Her eyes got big as she tried to imagine what it would look like.

"Absolutely," I replied, ignoring the glower from Rosalie and the defeated look on Jacob. Well, perhaps I more reveled in, rather then ignored Jacob's defeat. "Mommy has a break between her classes. I thought we could surprise her."

She could have come home during her breaks, but the threat of a sudden break in the clouds without Alice around to provide up to the minute predictions, coupled with the lack of study time at home, had led Bella to the conclusion that staying on campus between classes was the best option.

Today, I had some new reading material I wanted her to review. Surely, this early in the semester, she could afford a break. It wasn't like she'd have any assignments due yet.

Esme eyed me as I brought Renesmee in for breakfast. _Visiting Bella at school?_ She raised an eyebrow while she dished up three perfectly formed pancakes, decorated with chocolate chips in the shape of various smiley faces and set them before Renesmee. She tried to keep any further thought from me, but her general tone was a doubtful. I didn't understand. What could be the problem with me visiting _my wife_ at school during her break? Wasn't that a perfectly normal, if not romantic gesture? Besides, Nessie would love it. And we could go for a walk around the grounds. Maybe she'd want to go eventually. At the current rate of her accelerated learning, she'd be ready for first year college material in a few short years.

Renesmee's learning still astounded me. Without any formalized curriculum or learning plan, she was already reading middle school books and enjoyed listening to the classics. From the start she'd learned about biology as Carlisle continued to monitor her development and test her abilities. He hadn't realized just how much she was paying attention until one day, at three months of age, she'd asked what the cerebellum was. Since then he'd made a more conscious effort to teacher her something knew everyday. Like the rest of us, he found her natural curiosity and thirst for knowledge was the only catalyst necessary for her learning. If we didn't teach it to her, she looked for her own answers.

It was 11:46 when we rolled into the parking lot at the Rockerfeller Center and made our way across to the entrance of Carson Building. I glanced up at the sky. The cloud cover wasn't a solid as back in Forks. We quickly got in the building and made our way to the Baker library at the other end of the building. I could taste her scent in the air as we passed through the large wooden doors. She'd passed by within the last ten minutes. I started to follow her trail when I heard her voice.

"No, sorry. I have plans with my family tonight."

"Perhaps tomorrow, then? Or maybe we could go get some lunch. You have to eat." The male voice sounded. As soon as my ears picked out his voice from the din, I could hear him, see through his eyes that were trailing from Bella's eyes to her lips and then further south. The quickening of his heart as he waited, hoping for her 'yes'.

I froze in place¸ glancing down at Renesmee, and then around at the witnesses who were about to see one of their own splayed out in front of them as I threw him across the room.

"I, uh… have another class." She replied.

He chuckled, "Either you're twenty minutes late for your current class, or you have over an hour until your next one. Come on, eat with me. We can discuss the King Lear assignment." He reached for her hand.

Roused from my temporary shock, I pulled Renesmee to my side and quickened my pace around the series of book shelves to the table she was currently sitting at across from her about to be deceased classmate.

"Maybe some other time." She said, pulled her hand from his as I turned and saw them, finally with my own eyes.

"No better time then the present…" he pressed, leaning over, a confident smile on his lips that were about to meet the hard wooden surface of the table.

"Edward!" Bella jumped to her feet. Something flashed through her eyes that was neither joy nor relief. "Renesmee!"

I let her down to run to her mother who scooped her up and peppered her with kisses.

I glowered down at the boy who squared his shoulders, stood and matching my stare. "Edward, is it? You must be Bella's younger brother." He held out his hand.

I looked past him to Bella, standing there, holding Renesmee and staring back at me with an expression I couldn't decipher.

"I'm Charles Preston the Third," the boy continued, holding his hand steady.

I looked from Bella back to the boy and then to his hand.

"Charles is in my English Lit class." Bella said awkwardly.

I nodded and took his hand roughly, squeezing it a little harder then necessary. Charles acknowledged the pain, but didn't let it show on his face as he continued to return my gaze. I wanted to squeeze it into a bloody, pulpy mess. I wanted to yank his arm so hard, his head bounced off the nearby table while this limb detached itself from his shoulder. I then wanted to grab him from one of his remaining appendages and toss him into the tall wall of books twenty feet away at the end of the row and watch as the bones of his ribs snapped upon impact and his legs gave way as he fell to the floor.

"I'm sorry, Charles, but it seems I have a bit of a family emergency," Bella said hastily as she gathered he books and grabbed my arm. "See you later."

"I'll be looking forward to it," he said cockily and only the firm tug on my arm stopped me from rearranging his jaw.

"That cocky, self-absorbed, ambitious, piece of -" I started to sputter as we escaped into the college bowl and made our way toward a shaded park bench.

"Renesmee." Bella interrupted my tirade. "Are you hungry?'

She pressed her hand to show Bella the late breakfast she'd eaten not long before coming, focusing on the various faces Esme had made, one with a wobbly smile, another with an exaggerated upturned nose. Bella laughed, though the sound was hollow. Something was wrong.

"So what are you doing here?" she asked, glancing only briefly up at me, before focusing back on Renesmee.

"Daddy said we could come visit… and then he'd show me around the campus… and he has a book for you."

"Oh?" she looked back up at me then, this time her unusual expression was painted with curiosity.

"It just came in the mail…" I said handing her the motorcycle magazine. "There's an interesting article on page 48." I smiled innocently. The article bestowed the benefits of the Superbike, comparing it to other makes and concluding that for performance, there is no comparison.

"Thank you," she said coolly, taking the magazine from my outstretched hand. "Is that why you came? To deliver the magazine?"

"I thought I'd introduce Nessie to a college campus. It's never to early to start thinking of her future…" I proposed. It wasn't really a lie.

She nodded. "Well, thanks for dropping by. I have some reading to do and an assignment I want to get started on. See you at home?" she asked, again with the strange expression.

"Sure." I replied.

She turned to Nessie and gave her the warm send off of hugs and kissed I'd assumed she also bestow upon me. But instead she simply turned and quickly made her way back to the large double doors of the library.

I swallowed back the venom that had pooled in my mouth as I watched her go. The questions flooded my mind. What had just happened? What was that expression on her face and why wasn't she excited to see me? Why didn't she kiss me goodbye? What was with that Charles guy and why didn't she just tell him to get lost? When the door swung shut behind her I took Renesmee's hand and turned for the car. "Hey Nessie. Do you want to go find the city library?"

It was a long afternoon waiting for Bella to get home. After we'd found the library, took out a library card and let Renesmee pick out twenty-seven books, I'd allowed Jacob to take her on a run through the forest. I returned to our house and waited… pacing the floor, waiting… reorganizing my music shelf, waiting... rearranged the bedroom furniture six different ways and then put it back the way it was, waiting… and then, finally resolved myself to the simple act of sitting motionless in the burgundy leather wing-back chair in the living room, waiting.

The silver phone vibrated in my pocket. I slipped it out and flipped it open to read the text from Alice.

_**You shouldn't have gone…**_

I flipped the phone shut aggressively. Thanks for the warning, annoying pixie. If she knew so much why didn't do something useful, like tell me what I did wrong.

The phone vibrated again.

_**I could see you wouldn't listen anyway.**_

I flipped the phone shut again and considered throwing it at the wall.

It buzzed again.

_**Bella is going to be there in four minutes. Now… just listen to her!**_

I sighed and returned the phone to my pocket. Great advise, Alice.

I was waiting in the living room when she came through the door. Clearly something was wrong with what happened today, but I was completely oblivious as to what. What was wrong with wanting to visit my wife?

She eyed me warily as she came in, depositing her book bag and slipping out of her Alice approved footwear. She hesitated momentarily, as if she was unsure what she was going to do next until, finally, she took a seat on the sofa across from my wing-back chair and stared back at me.

The silence was maddening.

A part of me wanted to lash out, to make accusations I knew were untrue, to question her on this Charles Preston, and why he would think I was her younger brother and not her husband, and how she could possibly be anything other then delighted to see me at school. Alice's warning made me pause.

"Please, Bella… help me understand." I finally murmured.

Her face softened slightly as she huffed out a breath of air she'd been holding since she sat down. "Why did you come to the school today?"

"Because I missed you and I wanted to see you… and to bring you the magazine."

Her expression hardened. "You thought you needed to deliver the magazine? It couldn't have waited until I got home?"

It could have… but mostly I wanted to see her. "And I wanted to take Nessie on an outing…"

There was a long pause and suddenly the injustice of it – that she would be upset with _me_ when I'd found _her_ in the library with another man – boiled up in me and I suddenly seethed, "Who's Charles Preston the Third?" I said harshly, perfectly mimicking his cocky, arrogant voice.

"I told you today." She replied coolly, "He's in my English Lit class."

"That's not what I mean and you know it," I shot back.

"What does it matter who he is?" Her lips were pursed and the crease was firmly indented between her eyes.

Was there more to this boy then? This conceited little ass who dared to call me her younger brother? Younger. I snorted.

That was a mistake. Bella jumped to her feet and glared down at me. "That's it, isn't it. You don't trust me? You came to the school to check up on me? Don't you know me at all?"

"What am I to think when I come in and see this… idiot hitting on you and you…"

"Graciously try to refute his advances? Yes Edward, what are you to think of that – we clearly must be having a torrid little affair that began, oh, what two days ago?" She rolled her eyes, crossed her arms and glared down at me.

I knew I was the one being an idiot. The knowledge didn't seem to matter. Venom still boiled under the surface of my skin. The images of him looking down on Bella, how he looked at her, what he saw, through is eyes flitted through my mind. I uselessly closed my eyes against then and fought for some measure of control.

She was right. This wasn't her fault.

There was a long pause as I prepared to do what I had to do to make this right. Finally I took a deep breath and replied, "No. I really didn't think anything was going on. And I didn't come to check up on you. I just… really missed you while you were gone."

Bella's expression softened and the crease became much less pronounced. "I missed you too. But Edward, you can't come visit me all the time. I'm trying to get all my reading and work done during those breaks so that when I am home I don't have to try to stay away from you. You know that I want to do well."

I sighed and rubbed the back of my head. I knew all that. But still, now that I knew guys like Charles were lurking around that place, ready to pounce…

"You know I can handle myself, right?" she said softly.

Of course she could handle herself. She was a vampire. She could have pulverized that boy in an instant. It would only have taken the slightest flinch of her newborn fingers to break a limb, or remove a key piece of his anatomy.

"So why didn't you tell that… Charles Preston the Third to take a hike?"

She let out a burst of air. "Listen, Charles is a jerk and an idiot who only got in because of a generous donation from Charles Preston Jr." she cringed, likely thinking that didn't make her much different. "and he's happy to buy his way through school, but I'm not. And, unfortunately, he was assigned to my study group and so I'm trying not to make waves."

I swallowed and nodded. The thought of that… boy in her group was tough to reconcile myself with. But Bella was right. Making waves with someone with political ties to the school would mean she would have to flex her political weight and that wasn't something she was willing to do.

"I get it," I finally admitted, "I'm sorry… and as much as I miss you, I'll try to stay away."

Bella laughed, "That's good, because I seriously thought you were going to commit murder today and that wouldn't look too good on my college record." And though her tone sounded disapproval, her eyes flashed with excitement and sensuality that I couldn't resist. I jumped up, my arms finding their way to her body, my lips finding their way to hers. She caught me and, with a twist, I found myself flipped over onto the sofa with her hovering over me.

"Have I ever told you how sexy you are when you're jealous." She said in a low husky voice. She wasn't touching me, but the electricity flowed from our bodies as if she were touching me with a million tiny points all at once. I moaned as she finally leaned in and nipped at my neck.

"Is that what that emotion was today at the library?"

She laughed huskily. "A little of that, a little fear you'd actually go through with the threats your eyes were making, and some annoyance…" She lowered her head and traced a path with her noise from my left earn along my jaw and down to the hollow of my throat where she tasted me. I tried to reach for her, but in an instant she had me pegged like the other morning before her first class.

"You seemed to like this the other day," she raised an eyebrow as she had me trapped.

"I wasn't too happy where it led."

She laughed, "Well, I wasn't either…" she leaned in further, brushing her chest against mine and I could feel her breasts through the thin fabric. "I was thinking it would be fun to try again… when we had more time."

I reached as far as I could to touch my lips to hers, but she continued to hover just out of reach. And then, with a quick shift, she brought both of my arms over my head and held them with one hand, freeing the other. The venom sped through my veins in anticipation. With her free hand she reached down and took a hold of my shirt. With a firm grasp it was suddenly shredded and tossed to the floor beside the sofa.

"Hmmm," she murmured taking in my bare chest. I struggled to free myself when I saw her lick her lips. The waiting was the sweetest torture and I wanted to pull her to me… to do something. But she was still too strong for me. "You're quite the specimen," she said as she continued to examine me under the microscope of her gaze. She leaned in again and continued her journey from the hollow of my throat down, inhaling along the way. And then I felt her tongue as she followed the trail back up to my mouth.

Her kiss was nothing like the sweet kisses of our courtship. These were hungry, and a little violent, and filled with promise of much more to come. "Thank you for the magazine." She said when she pulled away.

Huh? Oh yeah, the magazine… "Did you like it?"

"Hmhm" she replied. "It gave me some ideas…" she smiled and leaned into my ear, "Of some other activities we might like to try, once we find what we're looking for."

I moaned as she temporarily lifted her shield and showed me exactly what she was thinking…

"Chaps?" I asked as the picture was suddenly gone, lost behind the shield of her mind.

"I saw a picture in the magazine." She said sweetly. "It was… inspiring."

I racked my brain through what I'd seen. Unfortunately, I'd purchased it purely for the one article and hadn't taken time to read it cover to cover. I'd have to do that… soon. But right now, Bella was going to have to take this to the next level or I would going to spontaneously combust. I laughed at the phrase.

Bella cocked her head to one side at my expression.

"I was just thinking, if we don't proceed soon, I'm going to spontaneously combust… though it would be own fault wouldn't it? Payback and all."

She smiled and leaned it, "We wouldn't want that." And with a few quick movements, the rest of our clothes were discarded in shreds on the floor. With a growl, she landed on me and we were joined as one as she kissed, and licked and bit her way along my neck and chest. It was mad and frantic and… amazing. And before we were done, we'd ended up rolling across the hardwood floor, knocking over a couple floor lamps, an end table and a book shelf in the process.


	5. Chapter 5

_**I own an '81 Honda Goldwing and an '85 Rebel... but not Twilight.**_

Chapter 5

We were lying on the floor, covered in books. Bella's head rested in the crook of my neck, her hand tracked lazy circles across my stomach and her leg was slung over mine when I felt the vibration of the cell phone through the floorboards.

"It's probably Alice," I growled. "Just ignore it."

But it buzzed again… On the third time, Bella sighed and got up, freeing me to find the phone in the mess of shredded cloth.

"I see your future disappearing in about forty-two seconds … so if you don't want to permanently scar your child, I'd suggest you get dressed." Alice barked over the phone.

"Jake and Nessie are coming," I warned Bella as I sprinted for the room. In thirty-nine seconds we were dressed, had reset the furnishings and books, and were comfortably sitting in the living room, Bella on the sofa and me in the wingback chair. In the fury of activity I'd managed to snag the copy of the magazine I'd ordered and I was casually flipping through it, looking for Bella's inspirational photograph.

The knock came two seconds later. "Hey guys," Jacob said as he came in, a bouncing Nessie at his side. He plunked himself down at the opposite end of the sofa from Bella while Nessie launched herself into Bella's arms.

"Welcome home from school, Mommy!" she hugged her enthusiastically, "Did your friend find some lunch?"

Bella laughed, "I'm sure he did. So what did you do all day?" she deftly shifted the conversation.

Renesmee pressed her hand to Bella's cheek and a flood of images passed through her thoughts – going to the library in town, taking out more books in one day then most children her age take out in a year, riding on Jacob's back as he pounded on all fours through the forest, and a brief altercation with a forest ranger...

"You crossed the path of a forest ranger?" Bella glared at Jacob.

"He came out of nowhere. I didn't hear him."

"Jacob," she said in a warning tone, "You've got to be more careful then that. What if he'd had a moment to think? What if he shot at you?"

Jacob shrugged, "It's not like he could hit me."

"It doesn't matter, Jacob." I retorted. "You should have told us right away. Now we'll have to find him and see if he's told anyone." I was pacing the floor, running a hand through my hair. What if he did? We'd have to leave right away. We needed to contact Carlisle, immediately.

Bella caught my glance and immediately understood. "Come on, Nessie. Let's see if Grampa is back from the hospital yet." She pulled her up and met me at the door. Jacob, blinking, followed us, unsure of what was going on, but knowing it was serious.

"I'm sorry," I whispered to Bella as we ran to the main house, "if we have to go, I promise we'll come back so you can finish your studies."

She shook her head, "Let's not worry about that now."

After our family meeting, with Alice and Jasper via satellite phone video-conference, we spent the next three days scouting out the location of the forest ranger and staking out his house. He wasn't hard to find. The altercation had occurred near the beginning of his shift and so we'd found him near the ranger station, returning from his daily trek through the woods.

_Strangest thing…_ He was shaking his head at the blurry image of a horse sized russet wolf with, what appeared to be a small child on his back. And though the image was clear, he didn't mention it to anyone. _They'll think you've lost your mind._ He warned himself. But still, the memory nagged at him.

That night we went to work combing the forest floor for Jacob's tracks and smoothing the dirt and moss over them to hide his presence.

"Is there anywhere that dog hasn't left his trail? Doesn't he know to hide his tracks?" Rosalie grumbled as she followed one particular set for four miles, erasing each one from the forest floor as she went.

It was a well place precaution. For that night the man had dreamed about the encounter and, in the morning he had a more well formed memory of the event, now elaborated on by his imagination through the dream. He set out in search of evidence. _Might not think I'm so crazy if I bring back proof._ He thought as he hiked up to the point where he'd seen Jacob and Nessie cross his path. He stopped, inspecting the ground where Jacob's paw print had been prominently on display just twelve hours earlier.

_Huh… I could have sworn…_ he picked at the ground, looking to either side of the trail. Unfortunately, the broken branches six feet up and trampled moss didn't escape his notice. _Something big came through here… but where are the tracks?_ He paused for a moment, following the path a short way into the forest before returning to the spot and calling back to the station on his walky-talkie.

"Hey Rog… got a minute?" he released the button, momentarily hearing nothing more the static filled silence.

"I'm off in twenty, Pete." The voice returned.

"This'll take ten. Just meet me down the main trail, half a mile from the station."

"Sure, whatever."

The two men stood there for twelve minutes looking back and forth across the path, scratching their heads.

"I'da know." Rog said taking a closer look at the broken branches. "Maybe a hoax?"

"But something's been through here…" Pete was insisting even as doubt crept into his mind.

Rog raised an eyebrow. _Maybe the guys gone off the bend… all those hours on the trail. He's finally gone buggie._ "You know what? It was probably some kids just came through, broke some branches, took a plank and jumped on it, making it look like a crop circle or something. Ida know, Pete… but I gotta get home. Meg will kill me if I'm late again."

Pete waved him off and looked over the path a bit longer before shaking his head and continuing on.

On the third day, he returned with a dog.

"Oh crap!" Emmett moaned, taking off up the tree.

"Wait…" I held up my hand… "It's… it's the family pet. Not trained."

Still he tried for a good half an hour to convince the dog to find a scent to follow into the woods. Fortunately the dog was much more interested in the deer scat just off the trail. He finally gave up and returned to the Ranger station.

That night it rained.

"There's nothing more for him to find," Carlisle determined. "We'll lay low for a bit. Edward, make a few trips to town, see if you hear anything. Otherwise I think we should be safe."

We breathed a collective sigh of relief and Jacob, abashedly, agreed to be much more careful in the future.

"You know," Bella said that night, a full week since our first motorcycle hunting trip. "If we had off-road bikes, we could have just made a bunch of bike trails."

"Sure," I replied. I wasn't opposed to dirt bikes, so long as they were high performance dirt bikes. "Would you like to do that? Go dirt biking?"

"I don't know." She replied, pensive. "I like the idea of going on a trip with you. But for that we'd need highway bikes. But spinning out through the dirt and mud…" she grinned, "Could be fun."

"Really?" she surprised me. I would never have imagined she'd be interested in that kind of biking. I tried to picture Alice or Rosalie or Esme decked out in motorcross gear. I laughed, shaking my head. No, I just couldn't see it.

"Do you think I'm being funny?" she said annoyed.

"No, not at all. I'm just surprised is all." I replied back. "Maybe we should try it sometime."

"Yeah, before we dish out several thousand dollars on a bike." She agreed.

"Bella," I took her face in my hands, "If you want to do both, there's nothing stopping us from buying both highway bikes and off-road bikes…"

She rolled her eyes. "I can't get used to that."

"To what?"

"Just buy both." She spit out, waving her hand like she had a wand. "Really, Edward. This is a purchase that people save up for, think about, weigh all the options carefully before making…"

"Like your's and Jacob's bikes?"

"That was different." She grinned, "It was a purchase of opportunity. They were free, and the labour was cheap."

I frowned thinking of the cost of that labour – all those hours she and Jacob spent together, the connection that had formed, the love I had almost lost. "Money is no object Bella. You'll just have to get used to it."

She snorted and turned back to the book she was reading. In a few minutes, Rosalie would have Nessie all bathed and primped and ready for bed and tonight Bella would read her bedtime stories before she drifted off to sleep.

"I was thinking about that article," Bella broached the subject as we returned to our cottage.

"Oh?"

"Yeah, and I was thinking, for comparative purposes, maybe we should try out a few European models. But I couldn't find any dealers around here. Maybe on reading week we could go check some out."

"Bella, that would be great," I started to reply tentatively, "but if you want to check them out, I'm sure a dealer would be willing to ship a couple models on spec."

"Really? They'd do that?"

If your willing to spend a small fortune... "Yes, often foreign dealers have relationships with locals to increase their market, without the expense of setting up a full, year-round shop," I lied smoothly.

"I suppose that makes sense. Who should I contact?"

"Listen, you did all the work to get us to the Harley dealership. Would you let me get this set up?"

"Um."

"We're still doing this together. Besides it'll give me something to do while you're at school."

"Okay," she agreed cheerfully, leaning over for an innocent peck. But there was nothing innocent about my response and soon we were back in our bed, making our own dreams until the sun peeked over the horizon.

Bella hadn't been out the door more then four seconds when I hit the speed dial on my cell. In fluent Italian, I ordered the Superbike, Multistrada and Streetfighter. Then, switching to German, I ordered the G650 GS, R 1200 GS Adventure and a Husqvarna TE630. With a few extra dollars they would be here in 24 hours.

I flipped open the cell again just as it vibrated. Alice.

_**The chaps will be there later day. You're welcome.**_

It is obscene how much that pixie knows. I shutter to think what she has seen. The cell vibrated again.

_**Believe me, I don't want to know. If I could block it, I would. **_

_**BTW we're heading home. We've gathered what we can here, and the Volturi are planning a visit in a couple weeks.**_

Well, that complicates things. I threw on my clothes and headed to the main house. Carlisle was in his study.

"Alice texted. She and Jasper have gathered up what information they can and are heading home."

"Did she get the DNA samples?"

"She didn't say. But, we have bigger troubles then that. The Volturi are planning a visit, so they're heading back."

Carlisle leaned back in his chair. "Ah, well that doesn't really surprise me." _They'll be keeping an eye on things here._

My cell vibrated as he was speaking.

_**Yes we got the DNA. Just the guard coming. Back in two days.**_

"Did she say who was coming?"

I smiled. They wouldn't risk a show down with just the guard. Not after Forks. "Just the guard. And she says they got the DNA."

"Excellent. That will provide me with some analysis. I'd like to see if they are truly immortal or simply have delayed aging like the wolves." _I'd like to map out both chomizonal structures... isolate the pairs that give rise to the aging, versus the other genetic dispositions..._ "When will they be back?"

"In two days," I replied.

"Well then, there's much to get ready. I can borrow much of the equipment from the university. I'd rather not conduct the analysis there." _Too many wandering eyes_, he chuckled.

I cocked my head to one side, wondering what he meant by that.

"It's a very competitive department. It seems everyone is looking to make the next medical breakthrough." _It makes for quite a stimulating environment. There is a lot of experimental research going on, even if some of it is under the radar. _His mind flickered through some of the more questionable procedures some of the residents had attempted.

As I left and started flickering through the minds in the house to locate Renesmee. It was unusual that I hadn't sensed her as soon as I arrived. But she had been practicing keeping her mind still in order to play hide and seek. Remarkably, she could manage it for about 20 seconds before she slipped. None of the others had that kind of control. The closest was Alice and she could only think of something else.

However, the house was almost completely silent. Aside from Carlisle, the only other voice was Esme. I located her in the kitchen.

"Hi dear," she greeted me as she worked on something for Jacob and Renesmee for later. _Rosalie, Emmett and Jacob took Renesmee out for a bit._

I sighed heavily. "I wish they'd at least consult one of us."

"I know dear," she said glancing at me from the corner of her eye. _It's heard, isn't it – getting everything you hoped for and more, and then having to let it go._ Her mind flickered to Bella.

"Is it so wrong of me to want them here, with me?"

"Not at all. But Renesmee is a miracle to all of us." _And look how she's changed Rosalie. Would you want to give that up?_

"No, but we have so little time with her. I don't want to miss anything."

"Every parent feels like that. Just be grateful for what you have."

"I am, more than anyone knows."

Esme just smiled. "Do you want to help me? I'm making muffins, cookies, a cake, banana loaf, a couple pies and then I'm going to do a lasagna, shepherd's pie and a meatloaf."

I laughed at her ambitious plan. "Sure, show me where to begin," I said as I rolled up my sleeves.


End file.
